Julia – 11 years of Family Jane Austen Festivals
My sister, daughter, mother, aunt and I used to come and watch the promenade every year, then my aunt died. The next year was filled with sorrow, we missed her, little did we know how bad things would be.
The following year my sister at the age of 35 got diagnosed with Breast cancer, she started her treatment in August and luckily was between treatments at the time the promenade was coming up, now every year for about 5 years we use to say to one another ‘next year we’ll dress up and join in’ it got to be a bit of a running joke, but this year as she sat there with her wig on because all her hair had fallen out and looking tired and pale eating her cake in the assembly rooms I said ‘Lisa next time we’re doing this!’ She laughed and I looked right into her eyes and said ‘I’m being serious, I’m going to learn to sew and make our dresses, life’s too short to wait’ we both she’d a few tears
The following May a sewing class started up, that was 8 years ago, I have made our dresses every year and either me and my sister or me and my daughter have walked the promenade each year. My daughters decision
to go to uni and live in Bath was because of the times we went there for the Jane Austen festival, she as we did fell in love with the place.
My sister is going to be 11 years cancer free this year and what the Jane Austen festival means to us is hope, love and plenty of lace.
